I was sitting waiting for something the other day and got to playing around with words. What resulted is corny, and I’m offering it to you to just have fun with, as I did. Here we go:
HAPPY
H Choose to be HAPPY when possible. Sometimes situations in our lives make being happy really hard, but things tend to go better when we have a positive outlook. So, be HAPPY.
A ACT on your dreams (or as Stephen Pressfield says in his inimitable fashion, “Put your ass where your heart wants to be.”) When we were little girls, most of us had dreams of being or becoming something that was exciting to us. I wanted to be a great actress or a famous writer. What did you want to be?
P PAY attention to your health. Good health is so important to our quality of life and to our longevity. It’s easy to ignore our health until something serious goes wrong, and then it becomes front and center. Don’t wait to cultivate good health habits.
P PLAN at least one vacation a year that takes you off the grid as much as possible. For those of us with our own businesses and no large support staff, this can be challenging. But remember how it feels to come back from a truly restorative time away? This is one way we can gain perspective on our lives and our work.
Y Say YES to life… but always remember that “no” is a valid answer too. As women, we’re quick to put others’ needs first, over our own. Make sure you’re saying yes to the things you want to do, even if it means you need to say no to something else.
NEW
N Do it NOW! I love the recommendation to do the hardest, most important task first—but I have great trouble doing this myself. I like to get the quick and easy things out of the way, which often means I get to the end of the day and don’t get to the most important tasks at all. Sometimes it helps me to think about the old suggestion to put the big rocks in the bottle first. What helps you?
E EAT a healthy diet (with some treats thrown in). I don’t think we need to be heroic about this. In my opinion, a good, well-rounded diet, with as much organic as possible, is sufficient. What we put in our mouths becomes our bodies, and we can’t redo the past. So start now if you’re not already eating in a healthy way.
W WEAR your favorite clothes. Don’t save them. I’ve had clothes that I didn’t wear until it finally seemed appropriate to do so. Often the clothes were out of date or shabby from hanging for so long. Who are you saving them for? Wear them now and feel great about how you look and feel.
YEAR
Y Get in touch with what you’re YEARNING for. How can you take it off the back burner and begin to plan for doing whatever it is? A different place to live? A new offering in your business? A trip to someplace special or to see someone special? Don’t reach the point in your life when it’s just not possible and live with that regret.
E ENTERTAIN friends you want to spend time with. Many of us got used to not inviting people to our homes during COVID. Well, now it’s possible, so let’s get back in the habit. It doesn’t have to be an exotic meal. It could be wine and cheese or dessert or whatever you like to put together.
A AVERAGE seven to nine hours of sleep every night. We read over and over again that one way we can have a big impact on our health, especially as we get older, is by getting plenty of sleep. It’s so easy to get in the habit of not going to bed early enough. We’ll just do one more thing or read one more chapter or watch the movie to the conclusion. Catch yourself when you’re about to do any of that and go to bed.
R RESPOND quickly to any ageist comment you hear. A friend recently told me that she had never felt old until she was in the hospital where she noticed everyone spoke to her as if she were a child, incapable of doing the simplest tasks for herself. If she hadn’t been so alert to this inherent ageism, she might have believed them. That’s what the messages we receive daily from our society do to us. So, be active in calling people out on whatever they are saying or doing that is subtly (or not so subtly) ageist.
Are you willing to select one or two of these suggestions to put into practice in the new year? If so, you might want to tell a friend about what you’re declaring so she can hold you accountable for doing what you say you want to do.
Happy New Year, everyone! I hope 2024 brings you great joy, good health, and much success in all ways!
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